Nonexistent
by greysky3
Summary: Sequel to Seam Girls. How will Miles deal with living in the Seam again, this time unstable, and most importantly, officially dead?
1. Chapter 1

I'm being chased through the wilderness. Branches pop out here and there, clawing at my face. My leg is bleeding. How long can I survive? I stumble over a fallen tree. They're getting closer. I try to get running again, but my legs are screaming in agony, and I keep tripping over roots and plants. I lose my balance again. I turn around, just in time to see a girl. Crystal takes her sword and plunges in into my stomach. I fall down, already dying.

I wake up. Cool gray light washes over the walls. This is home. This is safety, more or less. That word doesn't hold much meaning for me anymore. I can't seem to get out of the arena; no matter how hard I try. I often wake up screaming, and wake the Parthorns in the process. On some really bad nights, I go over to my old house. It's also in the Seam. It's a small, low-ceilinged house, but it holds so many memories. I haven't showed it to anyone, and no one lives there. I go and walk over to my old bed and sleep in it peacefully. It has a few dusty photographs, and a few toys from when I was little. But I usually stay here in my regular house.

I stretch out and put on some clothes. I pick a pair of pants and a shirt at random, and put on a patched-up jacket I've had forever. I open the door and walk out with steady strides.

I don't go to school anymore. Why should I? Dead tributes don't need an education. The Capitol keeps denying I exist. I walk out past this ashy little place we call the Seam, and under the fence. Not electrified.

I go up towards the river. That's usually where I meet Wren. He's dead too. He can't go to school either, so we just spend the days hunting together. I see him, a lone dark form leaning on one of the many boulders that ring our river.

"Another bad night?" he asks, seeing my crumpled hair and the dark circles under my eyes. I nod. I have been declared unstable. I lose control when I hear countdowns, when I have to go into a cave, and whenever District Eight is mentioned.

"Do you think we could actually do it?" I ask Wren.

"What?"

"Go to District… well… you know…" I swallow, "Eight."

"To see Amandla?"

Memories are rushing in. I close my eyes, stabilizing myself. What have they done to me?

"Yes." I finally say. I sit down abruptly, almost like falling.

"I'm helpless. I'm always breaking down. What happened to the old me?"

"You mean the stubborn, determined you who would never let anything get in the way of her strategies, who would always over-think everything and be suspicious of everyone?"

"Thanks. Way to go with reassuring me. I'm not sure which is worse anymore."

Crybaby me who gets nightmares and loses grip on reality or cold, unfeeling, murderous me who would survive at any cost? Some choice. Everything is frustrating today.

"What if the whole thing had never happened? What if Effie had picked two other names?" I ask, half to myself.

"Then I wouldn't have met you," he answers.

"And I wouldn't be mentally scarred."

"Aren't I worth that?" he asks jokingly.

"Definitely," I say, cracking a smile. I find that the more I smile, the more I heal.

Is Wren really worth it? I wonder. He believes I am entirely devoted to him. It's not false… it's just that I'm confused. Anything that has to do with the arena makes my head hurt and I have to close my eyes once again. I get up suddenly. Idleness makes my thoughts overflow and I might have a lockdown. It's when it suddenly becomes too much for me and I just squeeze my eyes shut and blot out reality.

I'm an embarrassment. The old me wouldn't have approved. She would have told me to pick myself up and get on with life. But now I'm not even sure who the old me was. Am I still the same person?

What if Wren decided he couldn't deal with an insane girl anymore? I'd collapse for good, and then I might as well die.

I set myself in motion. Too many thoughts are crowding my consciousness.

"Come on, let's see if we can shoot something." I tell him.

"No need. We might as well starve." I look at him worriedly. He's not supposed to do that. He's not supposed to give up. I'd collapse.

"No, you're right," he says. "Let's go."


	2. Chapter 2

Still nothing to eat after a whole day of hunting. The air is starting to get cold. I trudge along, knife in hand, waiting for even a small squirrel. At first, Wren was surprised by the fact that I hunted. There weren't any loose spots in the fence near his house. I'm shivering. I feel so terribly alone in this cold world.

"Let's go to my old house," I tell Wren, catching his arm.

"Your old house?"

"The one from before the mine accident…" I start. I don't need to say any more. I didn't like to talk about it even before the Games. I take a different path down to my old house. It's all alone, and the windows are grimy. The door has a rudimentary lock, which I open with a heavy key I hide on a hook on the side of the window. The door slowly creaks open. I step inside. While Wren examines the pictures on top of the fireplace, I search for another coat in a drawer. I find a thick one, less worn down than the one I have now and put it on.

"Is that you?" Wren asks.

I look over at the picture he's holding. There I am, smiling with all my teeth although missing some. My hair is messed up and sticking out in every direction.

"Yes," I say, quickly looking away from the faded picture. I don't like thinking about before. I walk out, newly warmed up with the extra jacket and lock the door hastily, Wren still at my side.

I start off towards my house. He knows where I'm going, no need to tell him. In passing, I see someone. I've never seen anyone over here.

Actually, it's a family. A tall man with dark hair and two girls, I assume his daughters. One looks just like him. She has her hair in two braids and piercing intelligent eyes. She must be around six years old. She's holding a small girl, maybe three, by the hand. The little girl has blond hair and blue eyes, open wide and taking in everything curiously.

I head towards them, suspicious and worried for my house. When I'm close enough, I see the man has a rabbit. He must have hunted it. He freezes, seeing me.

"Me too," I say to him, enticing him to trust me.

"You're lucky. I didn't find anything today," I add.

"It was tough," he admits, a small smile on his face. He introduces himself as "Mr. Everdeen." We shake hands while the older girl looks at me suspiciously. Finally I tell them I have to go, and I turn around to find Wren. I had forgotten about him. I grab his arm and walk off, while the Everdeens watch us go.

The air is starting to get cold, and small specks of snow fall from the sky. It starts to coat the ground thickly. I don't pay much attention to it. On the road home, I spot Bailey and Takeda running.

"It's snowing! It's snowing!" they exclaim in unison.

"Let's go to the river, it'll have frozen over!" Takeda suggests. Bailey agrees and they start to go, throwing snow at each other.

I start to follow them, but Wren hangs back. He always does this around Takeda and Bailey.

"Come on!" I say, pulling him over so he has no choice to follow me. He stumbles for a second and I think he's tripping, but he gets up again with a handful of snow. He throws it at my other arm. I reach down and scoop some up and hurl it at his face. I miss and he runs away laughing. I pick up another, trying to avoid his snowballs and chasing him down into the forest.


	3. Chapter 3

I hurl another snowball at Wren's retreating form. I keep missing and falling over, tripping over myself in the snow. He's outdistancing me, and I throw another wet glob of snow in vain, knowing I won't hit him, just for the thrill of doing it. He's out of sight now. Breathing heavily, I kneel down, supporting my body with my arms on my legs. Where is everyone? Maybe they just forgot me. Sometimes I wish I could just fall in the snow and lie there forever, untroubled by the world.

Experimentally, I sit down onto the snow. In no time, I'm covered in a fine layer of snow. I'm finally starting to relax when suddenly I'm picked up.

"Hey!" I start to protest. Guess who it is, Wren. He must have doubled back over and taken me by surprise. I try to wriggle loose and be back on me own two feet, but I can't. I hate the feeling of helplessness, so I just cross my arms until he lets go. To my surprise, he doesn't. He just continues walking as if I wasn't there, still carrying me bridal-style.

He stops for a second, slowed down by me. Taking advantage of his moment of distraction I push off and fall down into the snow. Initially I had planned to land on my feet, but instead I find myself all sprawled over the ground. Wren offers his hand and pulls me up. I dust the snow off of my face.

"I accept my defeat," I say.

"Finally," he smiles slyly.

Suddenly, I take off running towards the forest, where we had initially planned to meet my friends. I half expect him to pelt me with snow, but he doesn't. I guess he's being a gentleman now. I finally arrive at the fence, crawl under, and sprint over to the river. It's frozen over and starting to accumulate snowflakes.

Wren follows, and I catch sight of my friends on the far side of the river. I run over to join them, and I almost slip and fall on my face but Wren catches my arm just in time.

"Thanks," I breathe. Then I catch sight of their expressions. Bailey has a suspicious smile and Takeda is looking at me with eyes that ask too many questions. I have snow everywhere, and we both took longer than them to arrive. A lot longer. I realize what they're thinking and shake my head, eyes wide. I can tell they don't believe me, so I give up the charade. They can think what they want. Defiantly, I grab Wren's hand and pull him over to the other side of the river just to see their reactions.

They just shrug and chase after us. Half a minute later, I'm on the ground and so is Wren. Bailey and Takeda run off, laughing. I get up menacingly. They're sure to have some time on the ground too after I'm through with them.


	4. Chapter 4

I hurl another snowball at Wren's retreating form. I keep missing and falling over, tripping over myself in the snow. He's outdistancing me, and I throw another wet glob of snow in vain, knowing I won't hit him, just for the thrill of doing it. He's out of sight now. Breathing heavily, I kneel down, supporting my body with my arms on my legs. Where is everyone? Maybe they just forgot me. Sometimes I wish I could just fall in the snow and lie there forever, untroubled by the world.

Experimentally, I sit down onto the snow. In no time, I'm covered in a fine layer of snow. I'm finally starting to relax when suddenly I'm picked up.

"Hey!" I start to protest. Guess who it is, Wren. He must have doubled back over and taken me by surprise. I try to wriggle loose and be back on me own two feet, but I can't. I hate the feeling of helplessness, so I just cross my arms until he lets go. To my surprise, he doesn't. He just continues walking as if I wasn't there, still carrying me bridal-style.

He stops for a second, slowed down by me. Taking advantage of his moment of distraction I push off and fall down into the snow. Initially I had planned to land on my feet, but instead I find myself all sprawled over the ground. Wren offers his hand and pulls me up. I dust the snow off of my face.

"I accept my defeat," I say.

"Finally," he smiles slyly.

Suddenly, I take off running towards the forest, where we had initially planned to meet my friends. I half expect him to pelt me with snow, but he doesn't. I guess he's being a gentleman now. I finally arrive at the fence, crawl under, and sprint over to the river. It's frozen over and starting to accumulate snowflakes.

Wren follows, and I catch sight of my friends on the far side of the river. I run over to join them, and I almost slip and fall on my face but Wren catches my arm just in time.

"Thanks," I breathe. Then I catch sight of their expressions. Bailey has a suspicious smile and Takeda is looking at me with eyes that ask too many questions. I have snow everywhere, and we both took longer than them to arrive. A lot longer. I realize what they're thinking and shake my head, eyes wide. I can tell they don't believe me, so I give up the charade. They can think what they want. Defiantly, I grab Wren's hand and pull him over to the other side of the river just to see their reactions.

They just shrug and chase after us. Half a minute later, I'm on the ground and so is Wren. Bailey and Takeda run off, laughing. I get up menacingly. They're sure to have some time on the ground too after I'm through with them.


	5. Chapter 5

Wren's POV (earlier that morning)

I stretch out on my bed early in the morning. I had yet another terrifying dream. I was running in the arena, and Miles was with me. She kept running back because she thought Amandla was being left behind. I kept telling her to go, that the Careers were coming and Amandla was ahead of us anyway. Of course, knowing Miles, she didn't listen. She ran back and I was trying to chase her, but I only found a Career holding her blood-drenched corpse.

A moment of panic overwhelms me. Is she all right? She's fine, I tell myself. Just at home. I drag myself out of bed and I accidentally wake up Robin. Charlie and Mom are still sleeping in their bed. "Go back to sleep," I whisper.

"Why? What's happening?" he mumbles.

"Nothing. I'm just going out for a while."

"Are you going to see _Miles_?" he asks, an impish grin spreading across his face. I groan and ruffle his hair and head on out.

"Tell her I love her for me!" he calls out. "Or would that make you jealous?"

I shake my head, a smile creeping across my face. Robin is always teasing me. He's twelve, but he's already very smart. Charlie, who is nine, is quieter. Neither Robin nor I have ever said it, but we know he's Mom's favorite. Maybe it's because she got to name him, unlike both of us. Our father named us. He really liked bird names. He used to love his canary he took down into the mines with him.

His bird, Twyg, was the one who sensed there was something wrong in the mine. When Dad heard that Twyg had stopped singing, he got everyone out. He didn't get out in time. He died along with his bird.

We heard the story from other miners, my dad's friends. He put their lives above his own. Maybe Dad would be proud of me now, putting Miles's life above mine. But that… that's not the same.

That girl…I don't know what it is about her. My thoughts just always loop back over to her. While walking, I notice something white among all the gray of the Seam. Someone has nailed a piece of paper to a post. It says that there will be Hunger Games recaps for the Victory Tour. Miles will want to see this. She'd do anything to see Amandla again, even on a screen.

I take down the sign, which was sloppily handwritten and stuff it in my pocket. I head over to the Parthorn house, which is on the west side of the Seam. My house is a little higher up north along the fence. I reach the small road leading to the house and see Bailey. She glances over at me.

"Hi!" she waves cheerfully. I say hello back to her. I'm always a little nervous around Miles's friends. I like Bailey. She's always friendly. Takeda is a different story. She shoots me venomous looks whenever Miles isn't looking.

"If you're looking for Lena she's at _her_ house," she adds. Right. That's what they call Miles. I just can't help but hear a note of bitterness in Bailey's usually happy voice.

"Okay, I'll go there. Just because I need to give her a paper. An important one!" I say, and head off. This conversation is quickly getting very awkward. Bailey says nothing but there's a knowing smile on her lips. I can see why Miles likes her.

I trudge along one of the dirt roads that cross the Seam. The electric fence sits to my left as a warning. Miles's house isn't far. She went back to it for the first time since "the accident" as she calls it. That's when she became an orphan. She doesn't like to talk about it. When we were just back from the Games, she used to throw a pebble at a window in my house when she had a nightmare. I would get out of bed and she would tell it to me. She said she needed someone to confide in. She always said I could tell her if I had bad dreams. But I never did.

I see the small, dilapidated house up ahead. I quicken my pace and arrive at the door. Two large, square-paned windows flank the door. Sad wooden planters sit under them, but Miles never bothered to put anything in them. Where did she leave the key? I feel inside the inner groove of the left window for a small hook. When I feel it, I grab the keys and lift them off. It's pretty ingenious, hiding them in plain sight.

I put the rusty key into the lock. I turn it slowly yet decisively, opening the door with a small creak. All is quiet and dark. Steady breathing is coming from the bed. She's still sleeping. I better not wake her up, her dreams won't completely be gone and who knows what she could do. She could think she was in the Games. Most likely, she would break down and cry or scream until she's fully awake, but she can be deadly when she wants. I step out quickly and lock the door. I'm not taking any chances.

I slip the paper under the door and walk away. I'll go back around the time of the program. I set a brisk pace towards home. I still have a long day ahead of me.


	6. Chapter 6

Bailey's POV (earlier that same morning)

I wake up after having slept unusually well. That's a good sign, I guess. Anything can be a good sign if you want it to. This will be a great day. I stretch and yawn and slowly open my eyes. After my vision's blurriness wears off, I look around the room. All the beds are empty except for my brother's. Lena must be gone. Where is she now? Probably running off with that Wren, doing who knows what.

My eyes widen at the full meaning of what I've just thought. I'm jealous! I can't be jealous, I think. Lena is _my _cousin. Well, not really. She's going to turn fifteen soon. Maybe she will want to leave us forever and live on her own. Maybe she thinks she's too old to live with us. _But we're her family now! _The cry sticks in my throat and tears pool in the corners of my eyes. I can't take away her old family from her.

I wipe the tears away. Nothing can spoil my day. Even if she leaves the house, I can still visit her. This thought clears away any remaining worries and I get up, careful to not wake my brother. I stalk across the room and open a cupboard. It contains tin jars with the measly, rough grain I get from the tesserae. Lena's tesserae. I feel bad every time I eat that grain, thinking that this grain is the reason she went to the Games. Now, she has to pretend she's dead, so of course she can't take out any tesserae. But she makes that up by gathering food in the forest every day.

I take a deep breath trying to shut out the guilt and pour the grain into a stone grinder. The small, dark grain falls smoothly onto the curved stone. I grab the wooden stick we use to grind the grain and absently crush it in the stone. I do this every day. My family assures me I'm great at baking, but you couldn't know. With meager supplies, nothing tastes good.

When I deem the flour crushed enough, I add water from an old metal jug and start kneading it. When it's done, I light a fire in the brick oven and I put the dough in. It will need about two hours until I have to knead it again. What should I do? I walk outside, bent on taking care of the flowers.

The flowers are in the flower box below my front windows. Lena has some too, but she never plants anything. She says that unless you eat them, those plants are a useless waste of time. I disagree. My flowers are one of the few beautiful things in the Seam.

I find a small, white, square scarf and tie it on my head to keep my hair clear of my face. I carefully fill a watering can with water and grab our only pair of rusty scissors. I walk outside, ready to prune my flowers. I see someone in the distance. It looks like…Wren. I sigh inwardly. What does he want now? Probably looking for Lena. Otherwise he wouldn't be here. I put on my brightest smile and wave to him. "Hi!" He says nothing, just stands there in silence. I try to hurry things along.

"If you're looking for Lena, she's at _her_ house." I can't keep the venom out of my voice, so I flash another smile to cover it up.

"Okay, I'll go there. Just because I need to give her a paper. An important one!" He babbles, desperately trying to justify his looking for Lena. I smile again, but this time because I know why he needs to see her. That idiot is crazy for her. He walks away rather quickly, and I go back to pruning the flowers. I tenderly snip off their dry leaves and gently pour water near their roots. I start talking to them, because it really does help them grow.

"You know Wren? That was him. He's going to see Lena. You know Lena. Isn't it sad? She doesn't have a single plant to care for. Not one. Wait, thanks plants! You just gave a me a great idea!" I run off, leaving my scissors and water, towards the Meadow.

Lena said she wanted useful plants, right? Ones she can eat? I come to a familiar patch of mint stems. I carefully take them out, half pulling, half digging, until I have a good amount. I crawl under the fence, this time less in a hurry.

When I am closer to Lena's isolated little house, I see Wren leaving. That was quick. We meet again on the road.

"Going to see Miles?" he asks.

I nod.

"She's sleeping," he says hurriedly then walks away. How does he know that? How did he get in? And why is he always in such a hurry?

Wren leaves all these questions unanswered. I walk off briskly towards Lena's house. I settle down under her windows and get to work.

Twenty minutes later, I'm done. Her windows are brightened with purple tips of flowering mint stems, and bright green leaves pop out everywhere. They're not useless. You can eat them, or make them into tea. Lena hates tea. Oh well, she can just eat them then. I'm sure this'll brighten her day!

I walk back home again, this time a wide smile on my face—a real one.


	7. Chapter 7

Takeda (same day)

Another damn ugly day. I rub my eyes, already an angry red in an attempt to wake up. I storm out of bed, my hair puffed out and not caring. May dances into the room. Her light, wispy curls trail behind her as she runs.

"Tak! Can you tie my hair?" she asks. Just the sight of her makes me smile a little.

"Sure," I say and reach for a worn piece of ribbon. May stands in front of me, her back to me and I gently gather her hair. I hold the strands in one hand while I wrap the ribbon around her hair with the other. I let go and use both hands to tie a sloppy bow. I let go.

"Ta-da!" I say, and watch smilingly as she runs to a mirror to admire my work. Back t frowning now. I slump over to a mirror and force a rusty old comb through my hair. Close enough.

I slip on worn pants and a worn shirt. Any clothes that aren't worn down cost a fortune. I'm lucky enough to have a warm coat. I slip it on and help May with one that used to be mine. Back when I was little and stupid. What was it like to be her age? I scan her carefree face and I realize that I don't remember. It doesn't matter. What matters is the present. And the pressing matter at hand: no more food.

It's Sunday, so I can go gather things in the forest. Maybe Lena wants to go? I haven't seen much of her lately. She's hanging around with that stupid boy. What's his name? Wren. I just really hope Lena doesn't like him back. A part of my brain tells me it's a lost cause, but I can still hope, right? What do they even talk about all those hours?

_Hey, remember that time we almost died? Yeah, and remember the Careers' faces when we killed them? Oh yeah, did you see my family when I got Reaped? Hilarious!_

I sigh. Clear the thoughts, and then count to ten. Should I go see her? No, on second thought, maybe not. This alarms me beyond understanding. Are we growing apart? My friend since kindergarten?

I remember when we first met. I got placed in the seat next to her. I wanted to make small talk, so I asked her what her favorite color was. She told me that was a stupid question. Then finally, she said gray. Like the Seam around us, like coal, like her eyes. I told her that wasn't a color. Those gray eyes flashed at me. "Fine, purple."

Ever since we'd been friends. Polar opposites, we were. Then she introduced me to little Bailey, wide-eyed and scared of me. I remember how she looked silly in a small dress and blond hair to match. Gradually she got used to me and we were a happy pair until the mine accident. An elevator got stuck on the way down, and an explosion nearby killed everyone. Lena's parents were both in that elevator.

I'd never really know Wren. I'd heard about his father, Heath Redpath. He was the crazy bird man. Maybe that's why he gave his son such a stupid name. He doesn't deserve Lena. He's stealing her away from me. From us, I mean. But there's nothing I can do. If there's one thing Lena's good at, it's being stubborn.


	8. Chapter 8

Miles

As soon as I open my teary, blurred eyes, I see worry all over Wren's face. I'm embarrassed that he has to see me like this, but I guess he's seen worse. How's the arena for worse? How's me crying at the thought of losing Amandla, or going getting up in the middle of the night and just _screaming?_

I guess he's seen it all, in terms of my embarrassing moments. Not me, though. He mostly… keeps to himself. That's how I used to be, before I got attached to someone, before I needed the people around me to survive. What would I do without Wren? Curl up and die? Go irretrievably insane? Frightened by that possibility, and instinctively hug Wren.

I start talking; half muffled by some unshed tears. "What are we going to do at the Reaping?" Wren shifts, directing his intense eyes at mine. "What do you mean? We're not in the Reaping."

"That's not what I meant," I say looking away. "I mean, what if it's someone we know?" Wren had not thought of that.

"Well then, maybe we volunteer?" he suggests, uncertain. We're not sure what will happen. Will the dead tributes be allowed to attend? I shake my head.

"That would be the best way to get our families targeted. But if I could, I mean, if I was officially alive, I would volunteer for my friends," I say, as bravely as I can.

He laughs. "I wouldn't want you to go back to the arena."

"Why are you being so protective?" I ask, frowning. "I can do—"

"Whatever I want, and there's nothing you can do about that," Wren finishes, imitating my old phrase.

I sigh and get up. "You are so annoying."

"Isn't that what you like about me?"

"Sure," I half-smile. "I have to go do things. If you want to stay, fine, but don't break anything."

"What are those mysterious 'things' you must do?" he asks.

I grab my old coat and shove it on. "None of your business," I say, closing the door carefully. The truth is that I promised to see Bailey in the afternoon. It's already four-thirty. I hope it's not to late. As I push on the door to make sure it shuts (you can never trust these doors), I notice plants under the windows. Plants? I examine them more closely. They're mint plants. What kind of stupid prank is this? I'm about to rip them out when I stop myself. Where have I seen this before? Oh yeah, Bailey's house. She has some stupid flowers she talks to. As if they could understand her.

This is some kind of present. What does it mean? Bailey never says things bluntly like I do. It's always decoding feelings and imaginary messages with her. I sigh and make my way over. I trudge along the sad gray road in the afternoon light. Bailey's house isn't far. I can ever see it in the distance. I hurry my pace, until I'm running. Maybe I was more eager to see her than I thought.

I slow near her house, out of breath and panting. I swing the door open without hesitation. After all, this is somehow my home. Bailey is in front of the oven, baking some kind of bread. Another loaf is in a plate, cooling.

"Hey,"

"Lena! Hi!" she says, running over and dropping the spatula-like thing she was holding. She attacks me with a hug. I feel my ribcage compressing and small tears well in my eyes.

"Glad to see you too," I say after she finally lets go.

"I made tea!" She exclaims, and brings a teapot over. She _knows_ I hate tea. She pours it into two small cups. I slowly bring mine to my lips and force myself to take a gulp. It's horrible, like drinking grass. Seeing the kind of supplies we have in District 12, that's probably what she made it from.

"What did you make it from?" I ask conversationally. Bailey's eyes light up.

"Mint leaves!" Quick! Think of something nice to say!

"Uh… I saw you planted mint for me," I start. "And I wanted to say thank you. They're beautiful," I lie. Bailey smiles, radiant with joy.

"I'm glad you like them." I choke down the last of my tea. "It was really nice seeing you, but I have to go see Wren," I say. Bailey's eyes harden.

"Him again," she replies resentfully. Immediately, I know I've made a mistake.

"Uh, no, I meant Takeda," I say, desperately trying to catch myself.

"No, you didn't. Go," she says on a softer tone. I smile gratefully and begin to leave. "Wait!" she says.

"What?"

"Tonight… can you stay over, like before?" she asks, and she sounds about eight. This makes my heart melt.

"Of course," I say. "I'll be back around dinnertime." Bailey breaks into a wide smile.

"See you then! Have fun with Wren!" she shouts as I walk out the door, pulling on my coat as I go. I catch one last thing. "Make your you invite me to your wedding!"

I try to turn around and try to reply, but the door shut. Great. Now I have a lie on my hands, the one about seeing Wren. I guess I could still make it reality. I just hope he stayed at the house. I start to run, bitter wind biting at my face, but warmth inside.


End file.
